Takes One to Frame One
by WolfsongRoar
Summary: When Wes is left to his own devices in Vlad Master's mansion, he decides to explore. After he stumbles upon a secret project of the billionare- well, let's just say that Danny isn't the the only teenage halfa in Amity anymore.


Wes should've known better than to snoop around the Masters mansion, but could you blame him? It seemed to go on endlessly, miles of halls lined with Packers merchandise of all things, and for someone as curious as him, well, it was practically irresistible.

To be fair, he didn't _mean_ to be snooping, well, at least not at first. He was looking for the bathroom- somewhere he could hide, take a break from all the social pressure of his father's business dinner.

Mr. Masters' directions weren't exactly clear. Somewhere along his journey he must have had made a wrong turn because there was no door that fit the businessman's description in sight.

So, utterly lost and left to his own devices, Wes began to explore.

He had never seen so much memorabilia of any kind in his life. It was kind of creepy, actually.

While wandering, he tried to enter some of the rooms that led out of the halls. Some were locked, but many opened up to rooms that weren't particularly interesting - bedrooms, supply closets, _more packers merchandise._ He was genuinely surprised at the sheer lack of bathrooms, considering the amount of guests the mansion could accommodate.

For the first time, Wes reached the end of one of the seemingly infinite hallways. Before him was a door, made of a dark wood and ornately carved.

You know what they said about the cat.

Wes was teeming with intrigue when he opened the heavy door with a push. The room it led into was a library, several stories, filled with color from the thousands of book spines that peeked from the shelves that lined the walls.

Wes walked over to the nearest shelf and was surprised at what he saw. The books all seemed to be about ghosts; genuine ectobiology textbooks, theories, even more absurd titles that covered incredibly specific topics like "The Headless Minotaur Ghost Incident of January 15, 1904."

That sounded kind of interesting, actually. He reached for the spine to pull it out.

Wes jumped as the bookshelf began to rumble. He stood back and watch as it inverted, folding in on itself to reveal a stone wall with a small touchscreen square in the middle.

A digital keyboard appeared, and above it a blinking message: 'input password.'

Wes blinked. Fun was over, he guessed.

He almost walked away when he recalled something about Mr. Masters. While spying on, no, _listening_ to Fenton, he had picked up something about Mr. Masters being obsessed with his mom.

Out of humor, he typed 'maddie_fenton' into the keyboard and was shocked when it worked.

A portion of the stone slid away like a door to reveal a staircase leading down to an unlit room.

Conspiracies raced through his head. New world order? Apocalypse bunker? Was Mr. Masters a lizard person?

Wes shook his head and picked at his red dress shirt, clearing his mind. He didn't have enough evidence. It was incredibly suspicious, though, and he couldn't help but feel a prick of excitement as he started to descend.

His fingers traced the wall as, one step at a time, it to started to get darker. When the light from the library failed to be enough to see the next steps, he pulled out his phone and activated the flashlight.

Wes reached the bottom the stairs and used the flashlight to get a bearing on his surroundings. While it was enough to see a few feet in front of him, he couldn't get all the details. He knew he was in a big room, surrounded by technology and wiring, but that was the extent of it.

There had to be a light switch somewhere.

He waved the flashlight around, trying to gain perspective. With the ways the shadows morphed when he moved, it was hard to get any information.

There. Just over a small ledge was a switch, attached to a metal plated wall.

As was making his way to the light, he was tripped by an unseen wire and landed on the ground with a solid smack. Something clicked under him, and he moved from where he was laying over the cable. In the middle was thicker section with a button that now flashed red.

He hadn't seen the dim led before, but it was probably nothing. He shook off and picked himself up.

Alright. It was time to see what Mr. Masters was hiding. His hand hovered over the switch.

The click of the switch, the sharp crack of electricity, and the blinding flash were the last things he remembered.

* * *

When he first regained consciousness, the only thing he was aware of was the pain. A splitting headache pounded at his head like a hammer and it felt as if his body had been lit on fire.

His mind was fuzzy with static. Most of his body was too sore to even attempt moving, but he managed to pry his eyelids open.

The room that had once been dark was now illuminated with a sickly green glow. For several minutes he rested there on his back, staring up at the shapes that danced on the ceiling.

A fresh wave of pain hammered at his head. Wes reached go grasp at his brow to ears the pain.

He was glowing.

Wes sat up abruptly, ignoring the sharp sparks of pain that ran up his spine.

He was glowing. A halo of soft white light radiated from his hand.

Holy shit.

Alternate explanations boomed in his mind but he couldn't deny the obvious. He- he was a ghost.

His breath fluttered in his chest. He could feel heat prick at his eyes, and his cheeks felt frozen.

He knew he shouldn't have snooped around. What a bitch way to go out.

"_How did you die?" Oh yeah, I got lost in a billionaire's mansion, went exploring, and got killed by some kind of booby trap._

It was ironic, really. The same curiosity that had him uncover Fenton's secret had gotten him killed, and now he was probably going to be hunted down by him like all the other ghosts.

Wes laughed almost hysterically, running a hand through his hair. What had once been red was now a bright blue, fading into white at the tips. It seemed to move on it's own accord, dancing like a cold flame.

His entire outfit remained in tact, but the colors were switched. His red shirt and tie turned blue, matching with his hair, and his black pants and dress shoes were now a brilliant white.

Oh god, how was he going to face his dad? He couldn't bear the thought. And his mom, however distant she may be, would be heartbroken. They wouldn't even find his body.

Feeling a fresh wave of panic rise in his chest, Wes focused on taking deep breaths.

Breaths.

Ghosts didn't need to breathe. Except for _one._

Was he… like Fenton? Could he turn back human?

Gritting his teeth, he stood up, completely ignoring the pain. He leaned on the wall for stability and sucked in a huge breath, slowly exhaling while relaxing his neck.

The source of the toxic green that coated the room was a swirling void, captivating but also unnerving. It looked a lot like the pictures of the Fenton ghost portal. Except a lot bigger.

The pain was beginning to subdue, but only in little increments. The headache persisted, the burning sensation was slightly better, but the fuzziness that was there had vanished. He could think clearly now.

Satisfied in his ability to stand, Wes began to pace- it helped him think.

What did Fenton always say? "_I'm going ghost?"_

Wes scoffed at the cheesiness of it, but it was at least worth a try.

His footsteps stopped. He squared out his shoulders, trying to feel as vaguely heroic as possible, and shouted.

"I'm going ghost!"

His voice had a weird timbre, familiar but more tinny. There was a faint echo that could've easily come from the large room, but he knew better.

Wes waited for something, anything to change, but the only movements were the dancing colors from the ghost portal.

Wes sighed, pressing his hand to his brow. "Of course it wouldn't work. I'm already a ghost, dumbass."

That's when he noticed he was sinking into the ground.

He screamed, startled, and clawed at the floor. His nails caught onto a gap in the flooring and there he remained, half under the ground.

With a heaving pull that ignited nerves in his arms he managed to get out, and he breathlessly lay on the floor once more.

It seemed like with each day his life was getting crazier and crazier.

He closed his eyes, suddenly drowsy. He placed his hands on his chest to get them out of the way to sleep. His heart was pumping frantically- it was comforting to know that still worked.

Wes was comforted with the light, weightless feeling he often got when falling asleep. But something didn't feel quite right. He cracked his eyes open-

He was suddenly plummeting, falling, all too aware of how fast he was accelerating.

A sickening crack echoed in the room, knocking the breath out of his lungs. Crushed up on the ground, a ring of light split from his hips, tracing over his body and returning him to humanity.

Wes moaned in agony, feeling worse than ever, but the sharp explosion of pain dulled to a vague throb in a worryingly short amount of time.

He was going to have to return to the dining hall sometime. They would be getting suspicious.

Fueled by fear, Wes got up and started slowly limping back to the dinner.

* * *

When Wes finally came back to the dining hall, all eyes were on him. Uncomfortable with the spotlight, he shuffled back to his seat as quickly as possible, desperately hoping he wouldn't suddenly turn invisible or fall through the floor.

The long hall was lined with red carpet, a strong contrast to the yellows and greens of the rest of the mansion. The room that had once felt massive was now chokingly claustrophobic.

When he sat down, the pressure of the chair on his back activated waves of pain in his ribs.

"Wes!" His father hissed. "Where have you been?"

"Sorry," Wes murmured, not making eye contact. "Got lost…"

An small smirk that didn't quite sit right creeped it's way onto Mr. Master's face. "Oh, don't worry about it."

Wes let out an empty laugh and looked down at his hands.

He didn't touch what had remained of his food.

* * *

**A/N: wow... I wrote this in the span of two days, fueled only by hyperfocus and coffee, so this is probably mostly incoherent haha. Let me know of any errors in a review!**

**Thanks for reading!**


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